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ACLU of North Carolina Calls on Governor Beverly Perdue and Attorney General Roy Cooper to Respect the Rule of Law (10/29/2009)
RALEIGH – On the scheduled release date for Bobby Bowden and the other inmates whom the Department of Correction (DOC) deemed earlier this month to have completed their prison sentences, the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina (ACLU-NC) today urges the Governor and the state's Attorney General to uphold the Due Process guarantee under both the U.S. Constitution and the North Carolina Constitution that has been a fundamental principle of our constitutional democracy since the founding of this nation.

DHS Announces 11 Previously Unreported Deaths In Immigration Detention (08/17/2009)
NEW YORK – Prompted by an American Civil Liberties Union lawsuit seeking previously unreleased documents related to the deaths of immigration detainees in U.S. custody, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials today revealed 11 deaths that have occurred at detention facilities since 2004 that the government had previously failed to publicly disclose.

House Subcommittee To Examine Role Of Federal Statute In Denying Prison Rape Victims Access To Courts (07/08/2009)
WASHINGTON – The House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security will hold a hearing today to examine the role of a federal statute in denying prison rape victims access to courts. During today’s hearing, entitled “National Prison Rape Elimination Commission Report and Standards,” lawmakers will review the need to reform provisions of the Prison Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PLRA), a law intended to reduce frivolous lawsuits by prisoners.

Prison Reform Advocates to Discuss Cost-Saving Alternatives to Incarceration at July 11 Forum in Tucson (06/29/2009)
PHOENIX – Saying Arizona's prison policies have led to high incarceration rates and government misspending, local prison reform advocates are urging community members to participate in a public dialogue on July 11 in Tucson on how to reduce crime and save taxpayer dollars.

ACLU of Louisiana Sues over Access to Council (06/09/2009)
Today the ACLU Foundation of Louisiana filed suit against Jefferson Parish officials because a prisoner in Jefferson Parish Correctional Center has been denied access to a lawyer. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, seeks a temporary restraining order requiring Jefferson Parish to allow prisoner Torrey Brown the right to a confidential meeting with attorneys in order to discuss a possible claim against the prison for his treatment while there.

Prisoners' Assistance Directory (2008) (01/01/2008)
Guide to organizations in each state that work on prisoners' rights issues.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this document has not been updated since 2007. Some information, including contact information, may be inaccurate. The National Prison Project makes no guarantee as to the accuracy of this information.

ACLU National Prison Project Publication List (07/05/2007)

Out of Step With the World (05/25/2006)
First comprehensive international and comparative analysis of felony disfranchisement policies, examining other western democracies' policies, practices and legal precedents.

Prisoner's Rights - ACLU Position Paper (09/10/1999)

Expert Report on Use of Force in Unit 32 - Mr. Kenneth McGinnis (October 2007) (11/15/2007)

Expert Report on Unit 32 Classification - Dr. James Austin (November 2007) (11/15/2007)

Presley v. Epps - Supplemental Consent Decree on Mental Health Care, Use of Force and Classification (11/13/2007)

Commissioner Lantz of the Connecticut Deparment of Corrections Letter to the ACLU of CT (11/08/2006)
Commissioner Lantz of the Connecticut Deparment of Corrections Letter to the ACLU of CT

ACLU of Connecticut's letter to Commissioner Lantz of the CT Department of Corrections (10/30/2006)
ACLU of Connecticut's letter to Commissioner Lantz of the CT Department of Corrections

ACLU Testimony before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security (06/26/2008)
Good afternoon. My name is Tom Jawetz and I am the immigration detention staff attorney for the National Prison Project (NPP) of the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation (ACLU). The ACLU is a non-partisan organization with hundreds of thousands of members and 53 affiliates nationwide. For more than 80 years, the ACLU has fought to defend the Constitution and our precious civil liberties against assault. One of our most important tools is the Freedom of Information Act, which allows members of the public to obtain vitally important information about government activity. But in a world where privatization of core governmental functions—including the management of our prisons and jails—is on the rise, more and more information is being shielded from public disclosure.

ACLU Letter to House Judiciary Subcommittee Leadership Urging Support of H.R. 1889, the Private Prison Information Act of 2007 (06/25/2008)
On behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union, a non-partisan organization with hundreds of thousands of activists and members and 53 affiliates nationwide, we write to support H.R.1889, the Private Prison Information Act of 2007 and urge the members of the Subcommittee to support its passage. This much needed legislation would require private entities operating prisons that detain and incarcerate federal prisoners to release information about the operation of the prisons in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) as any federal agency operating a facility is required to do.

ACLU Letter Supporting H.R. 261 (12/06/2007)
On behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and its 53 affiliates, we write in support of H.R. 261, the Federal Prison Bureau Nonviolent Offender Relief Act of 2007. This legislation provides for the early release of non-violent offenders over the age of 45 who have not been convicted of a violent crime, have not attempted to escape from incarceration and have not violated prison disciplinary rules.

ACLU Letter in Support of H.R. 1889, the Private Prison Information Act of 2007 (11/09/2007)

Testimony of Tom Jawetz for the House Immigration Subcommittee Hearing Detention and Removal: Immigration Detainee Medical Care (10/04/2007)

2008 – 2009 National Prison Project Litigation Docket (7/27/2009) (01/06/2009)
Summarizes developments in the National Prison Project's cases during 2008 and 2009.

2007 - 2008 National Prison Project Litigation Docket (08/29/2008)
Summarizes developments in the National Prison Project's cases during 2007 and 2008.

2006 – 2007 Updated National Prison Project Litigation Docket (10/18/2007)

2006 – 2007 National Prison Project Litigation Docket (05/21/2007)
Summarizes developments in the National Prison Project's cases during 2006 and 2007.

Custody and Control: A Former Inmate's Account of Abuse in Juvenile Justice (09/29/2006)
"Custody and Control" reports that "delinquent" young girls from backgrounds of intergenerational poverty. Juanita Crawford, 19, spent a year and a half at Lansing Correctional Facility.

Know Your Rights: Legal Rights of Disabled Prisoners (06/02/2006)

Know Your Rights: Restrictions on Visitation (06/02/2006)

Know Your Rights: Freedom of Religion (06/02/2006)

Testimonials of Six Inmates Incarcerated at New Orleans Old Parish Prison during Hurricane Katrina (11/18/2005)
Testimonials of Six Inmates Incarcerated at New Orleans Old Parish Prison during Hurricane Katrina

Summary of Testimonials From Inmates Incarcerated at Orleans Parish Prison During Hurricane Katrina (11/18/2005)
Summary of Testimonials from Inmates Incarcerated at New Orleans Old Parish Prison during Hurricane Katrina

Jones v. Bock and Williams v. Overton (09/19/2006)
Challenge to a set of judicially-created rules that seriously impair a prisoner's ability to bring grievances to federal court. DECIDED

Beard v. Banks (03/16/2006)
Reviewing whether maximum security prisoners in long-term segregation can be denied access to all non-religious newspapers and magazines. DECIDED

Cutter v. Wilkinson (12/30/2004)
Reviewing the constitutionality of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, a federal law designed in part to protect the free exercise rights of prisoners and other institutionalized persons. DECIDED

Garrison S. Johnson v. California (09/08/2004)
Reviewing whether California's policy of racially segregating all new prisoners should be subject to strict judicial scrutiny. DECIDED

Overton v. Bazzetta (02/20/2003)
DECIDED